Public Gets Chance To See New Hotel Under Construction At DIA

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DENVER (CBS4) – Construction has been underway at Denver International Airport on a new hotel and transit center, and now anyone curious about the work can get a look inside.

The turnout for the public tours was large on Saturday. “Doors Open Denver” holds the tours on the third Saturday of every month through September because a lot of people see the cranes looming over DIA and wonder what’s to come.

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Curiosity brought out the explorers in Mark and Jennifer Moyer.

“We drive by; we just see a lot of construction going on. We don’t know what it is exactly,” Mark Moyer said.

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“You come to DIA all the time to pick up and drop off and you’re always in a rush. Today you get a chance to actually look around. You don’t have any plane to catch,” Jennifer Moyer said.

The special tours give onlookers like the Moyers an inside look.

“We wanted it high enough so we can bring those tubes out and extend for any kind of future processor,” a guide told the tour. “We can look down at over where the train will be coming at us.”

A new transit center is also being built along with the Westin Hotel with 519 rooms.

“Business travelers will be able to fly in, have a conference in the hotel, take the train into downtown Denver at night, come back, and fly out to their destinations,” DIA spokeswoman Julie Smith said.

There will also be a public plaza outside the hotel — not just to attract travelers.

“We will have arts and venues, and use that space for a variety of events from beer gardens to farmer’s markets to concerts to lectures,” Smith said.

DIA expects the hotel to bring in almost $5 million each year and another million in local and state taxes.

“It’s incredible, it’s huge,” Jennifer Moyer said.

Now the next time the Moyers drive by DIA it won’t be a mystery.

“At least we can talk about it with people who haven’t done this tour,” Mark Moyer said.

The hotel is expected to open in the fall of 2015, while the transit center will be finished in 2016.